Kamp satisfied with top sectors

DLO’s research funds are being allocated by the top sectors in a transparent manner, concludes Henk Kamp, the minister for Economic Affairs, in a reply to questions in Parliament about the financing of research.

The questions were prompted by the article ‘In-crowd at work in the top sector’ in Resource. According to the minister, the Agri & Food and Horticulture & Propagation Materials top sectors always have an open call to businesses to submit research proposals, and the criteria for evaluating the proposals are fi xed in advance. In the Resource article, people involved in the process claim that the allocation of projects through the top sectors is not transparent and that well-informed market leaders are assigned the most projects while SMEs get a raw deal. The minister writes that this does not fit with what he sees.